


When Burns Your Heart

by Haishin



Category: Green Lantern (Comics), The Flash (Comics)
Genre: AU, Angst, Feb 20th, Fictional ailment cause a real one won’t work, Happy Birthday Hal, Happy Ending, I tried to write fluff and it turned into angst, M/M, Temporary Character Death, This is a happy fic I swear, blood but no violence, liberties were taken, soul marks, soul mates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-22 00:32:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13752471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haishin/pseuds/Haishin
Summary: When someone's soul mate dies, their name disappears from their partner's wrist. Not many are aware of this fact however so when it happens to forensic scientist Barry Allen, also known as The Flash, the blond is left confused and worried. Then he gets a surprise.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [magnetocent](https://archiveofourown.org/users/magnetocent/gifts).



> I hurried to finish this so if there are any mistakes then I apologize. I just wanted to get this in on time for Hal's birthday. There may be moments where Hal and Barry are out of character, I tried not to do that but stuff happens.
> 
> Gifting this to magnetocent because they convinced me to finish and post this when I thought it would be better off hiding in my google docs.

His wrist had been itching all day, tiny pinpricks of sensation dancing along his skin every few seconds as he wrote report after report. It was easy enough to ignore at first, a little lotion and a lengthy distraction keeping him from scratching the thin skin raw. Then he’d gone for lunch and the sensation had changed from a harmless tingle to an almost painful burn. He’d inspected the skin of his left wrist with all the scrutiny a tired forensic could muster, even going so far as to swab his skin to test for possible chemical irritants. If the test had come back positive then at least he’d know what was happening and not worry so much. Unfortunately, the test had yielded no useful results and so Barry had grit his teeth and gone back to trying to put a dent in his paperwork.

Across the lab, Patty watched him carefully over her own stack of paperwork. She had offered to help him try and figure out what was going on but Barry had insisted that it must be nothing, earning him a rather parental glare from his blonde lab partner. She had decided that she’d keep an eye on Barry whether he liked it or not and gone back to her work, glancing over every once in a while to ensure he wasn’t suffering in silence. It isn’t until ten minutes later that she realizes she hasn’t had lunch and excuses herself from the lab to go and take her break. “See you in 15.”

Barry gives a nod as he watches Patty go, secretly glad that she was finally gone. His wrist was causing him real pain now and hiding that fact from his overprotective friend wasn’t the easiest thing to do. Thumping his head on the desk Barry stares down at his wrist, fingers wrapping white-knuckled around the aching joint. The bracelet he wore to hide his soul mark was blessedly cool against his flesh, the shiny steel smooth and unabrasive.

Despite knowing for nearly a year who his soul mate was Barry had chosen to keep their identity to himself. Of course, there were some people who knew. Three, to be exact. Wally had found out while they were cleaning up under the sink after a pipe had leaked. His bracelet had caught on a loose nail and the clasp had popped, the younger speedster seeing the name hidden beneath before he could cover it. He didn’t end up having to bribe Wally with anything but he’d told Barry that he should just get it over with. Bruce hadn’t commented on the emerald scrawl across his wrist when he’d been setting Barry’s wrist after a nasty fight with a space creature had snapped the bracelet and torn his suit. He’d spent the rest of the day wondering if he shouldn’t just take Wally’s advice, nearly at a decision when green light had flooded the hall around him and sent him into a panic. Kyle simply gave him an apologetic smile and assured him he wouldn’t say anything no matter who asked. Barry had been eternally grateful and promised to repay Kyle in some way.

Snapping from his thoughts Barry lets out a soft groan as the pain increases, his skin stinging and slightly red around his bracelet. He remembers the lotion in his desk drawer and briefly considers applying more before scrapping the idea entirely. He doesn’t know what’s going on right now -not even sure he’d completely understand if he did- and if the lotion didn’t help before he was sure it wouldn’t now. There’s a moment where the pain ebbs and Barry thinks he may finally be able to get some work done -forget this even happened- but just as he’s sitting up the pain returns ten-fold. Doubling over Barry grasps at his wrist, scrambling to release the clasp on his bracelet and maybe figure out what’s causing this gut-wrenching pain.

It falls to the floor with a soft clink, the sound going unnoticed as Barry stares in horror at the slowly fading name on his wrist. There’s barely any letters left, the scrawling emerald _J_ fading almost like smoke and burning viciously as it goes. The lowercase _d_ starts to disappear before the _J_ is fully gone, the pain changing from a deep burn to an almost unbearable stab. He catches sight of blood welling up where letters used to be, stomach rolling at the sight and sends him scrambling to reach the small garbage can at the side of his desk. He just barely reaches it in time to keep his lunch from meeting the tile floor, gagging once before bile burns the back of his throat and he’s trying his hardest to hold himself up as he heaves up his lunch. He’s just gasping through the pain in his wrist and throat when there’s a loud bang, the sound turning out to be Patty flinging the lab doors open with all her strength.

“Barry?!” Rushing over to her friend and co-worker, Patty kneels next to the shivering blond and smoothes back his sweaty bangs. “What happened?”

Unable to answer Barry shakes his head, carefully nudging the trash can away in the hope he won’t be needing it again. He keeps his wrist hidden against his thigh, breathing through the nausea as he carefully gets back in his chair with a little help from Patty. It takes several minutes for him to get his bearings, several more before he can convince his co-worker that he’ll be fine and shoo her back to her desk across the room. She goes but not willingly, taking the trash over to the far corner where the sink is and sending Barry worried glances as she gets ready to resume her work.

“You’re awfully pale, Allen. Maybe you should go home? I can cover for you today.”

At first he thinks he should decline, that now that there’s nothing left in his stomach for him to throw up he’ll be able to struggle through the pain and finish his work. Then his wrist twinges painfully and he changes his mind. “I think I will. Thanks Patty, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

* * *

 

He’s showered and changed within minutes of getting home, the still bleeding marks on his wrist cleaned and bandaged with detached efficiency. There are even fewer letters left but thankfully the pain has faded to a dull throb that pulls at his bones and leaves him too tired to think about what has happened. So he crawls into bed and cocoons himself in his fluffy comforter, not even noticing that the pain in his wrist is gone as he falls easily into a deep sleep.

 

Barry wakes with a start several hours later to an open window and the sound of someone moving around his kitchen. He sits and listens for a moment, mind working quickly through who could be in his house and how they got there. In the end, he throws off his blanket and silently makes his way down the hall and to the kitchen. Peeking around the corner Barry catches the sight of short brunet locks from over his table, breath catching in his throat as he chokes out the person’s name. They don’t seem to hear him so he hurries around the table and pulls them up by the arm. “Hal.” He breathes out, eyes wide in relief.

“Hey Barr,” The easy smile Hal turns on him is contagious, Barry returning the gesture immediately. “Sorry if I woke you, was trying to be quiet.”

“It’s fine, Hal. I’m just glad to see you.”

He gets a raised brow in response, the lantern not commenting as he looked the other over. Amber irises trail along his sleep-mussed hair and face, roving over his shoulders and chest with idle interest until they reach the stark white wrap curled around Barry’s left wrist. Hal nods to the bandage and gives his friend a questioning look. “What happened there? Sleepwalking?”

“What?” Looking down at his wrist Barry gives a soft laugh, trying to play off his wound as nothing. “Oh, this? It’s nothing, my bracelet got caught and ended up breaking skin. It’s fine, probably already healed.”

Hal gives Barry an unimpressed stare followed shortly by a toothy grin. “Well, then you don’t need the wrap anymore do you?”

Before Barry can react Hal has his wrist held gently in his hand as he starts working the wrap off. He has it about halfway off when Barry tugs his wrist free and mumbles “You’re in a mood today, something happen?”

“Oh, you know usual space crap,” Hal drawls, pulling a chair out and falling into it as he eyes Barry’s wrist. “Fighting, asteroids, dying and coming-”

“Wh _at_?” Barry asks, eyes going wide as the events of the day suddenly seem to snap into focus and make sense.

“-back. Barr, you’re white as a sheet.”

“What did you just say?”

“Asteroids?”

“ _Harold_.”

“Ok, fine,” Hal throws his hands up in defeat and turns an apologetic look on his friend who still looks like he’s going to pass out. “I _technically_ died, but not really.”

Pulling up his own chair Barry collapses into the solid object and gives Hal a withering stare. “Care to elaborate?”

“I got, er… drugged. Apparently, for aliens it’s a type of aphrodisiac or something but in humans, it mimics death and-” Trailing off on the last syllable Hal leans forward in his chair and tries to catch Barry’s eye but the speedster is staring hard at his wrist, fingers biting into the delicate skin. “Barry are you okay?”

Holding his wrist out Barry keeps his head down, waiting with bated breath for his friend to get the hint and pull off the rest off the wrap. It takes several minutes of silence and dumbfounded staring on Hal’s part before the Green Lantern reaches out and gingerly takes his friend’s wrist in hand. The white gauze falls slowly to the ground between them as it’s unwound, each layer removed revealing a strip of pale skin. As the last bit slides from his wrist, Barry looks tentatively up, cringing at the look of concerned anger that Hal was directing at the still red skin of his wrist.

“What the _hell_ did you do to your wrist, Barry?!”

Irritation flares up in Barry’s chest as he straightens out and glares at Hal. “ _I_ didn’t do anything to it! You’re the one who-” Slapping his free hand over his mouth Barry watches Hal carefully to see if the lantern had managed to put two and two together. Thanks to his little slip-up, it looked like he had.

“Barr, what did this used to say?” Hal’s voice was deadly calm, pitched carefully to not show his emotions as he waited patiently for Barry’s answer. When it didn’t appear that Barry planned on answering, Hal sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Look, I’m pretty sure I already know but I wanted to hear it from you.”

“It was your name,” Barry whispers, voice quivering and free hand coming up to rub at his eyes. “Around noon it started to disappear.”

He isn’t looking at Hal but can feel the other man tense at his words, thumb coming up to smooth carefully over the irritated red of his wrist. He traces what’s left of his name, thumb pressing in once he traces the last letter. He laughs, a low hollow sound that has Barry’s head snapping up to look at his friend with worry.

“‘ _Har’_ are you serious?”

Barry tries to smile but fails as his eyes catch the slip of silver on Hal’s right wrist. Just once, he’d caught sight of slanted cerulean scrawling almost messily across the tan of Hal’s wrist. He’d been unable to read what it said but was almost sure it wasn’t the name he was hoping for.

As if reading Barry’s mind -but really just seeing the dejected look on his face- Hal holds his right wrist out to Barry, giving his friend an expectant look when all the blond does is stare at him in shock. He’s already decided that he’s going to wait as long as it takes for Barry to make up his mind and so leans back to sit more comfortably in his chair, releasing the speedsters wrist as he does so. Of course, patience has never been his strong suit, so after several minutes pass Hal lets out an irritated sigh and hooks his foot around the leg of Barry’s chair. He yanks it forward, smirking at the little yelp of surprise Barry gives before taking the blond’s hand and places it right over the clasp of his bracelet.

“Hal I-”

“Do you really think I’d have you take it off if someone else's’ name was under there? After _that_ ?” He gestures to Barry’s wrist then locks eyes with the blond and rubs soothingly at the back of his hand. “Do you _really_ think I could be that cruel to you?”

Barry shakes his head, a soft ‘no’ falling from his lips as he finally releases the clasp, eye flicking between Hal and the bracelet a few times before sliding the stainless steel off and letting it fall to the table with a soft clatter. He doesn't look right away, eyes seemingly glued to the silver sitting innocently on his table. Then he sighs deeply and turns his gaze on Hal’s wrist, starting in shock at what he finds. He rubs his thumb over the messy scrawl that he now recognises as his own messy handwriting, half expecting it to rub off and show a different name underneath. It doesn’t and Barry nearly begins crying with joy, but then he remembers what made him doubt in the first place and asks “Why is it _blue_?”

Hal laughs loudly, a strained ‘ _What?’_ escaping between breaths and laughter.

“Don’t laugh! Why is mine blue if yours is green?” Barry glares at Hal but doesn’t release his wrist. “Your eyes aren’t green, your suit is so shouldn’t mine be red?”

“Barr,” Hal puts a finger to the speedsters lips in the hopes of keeping him quiet and smiles at the frazzled blond. “Why is this suddenly so important? It doesn’t matter that much does it?”

“Well, no…” Barry concedes, eyes trailing over his name on Hal’s wrist once more with a warm smile. “It’s just that all this time I thought you couldn’t have my name on your wrist because I _thought_ it’d be red and now I feel like a huge idiot for being wrong this whole time.”

“Well, I do and now that we’ve gotten that out of the way can you _please_ tell me what happened today?”

“I told you- around noon it started to disappear.”

“Barry your wrist was bleeding, don’t tell me ‘it just started to disappear’. It hurt, right?”

Barry opens his mouth to protest, stopping when he sees the determined look in his friend’s eyes and instead gives a sigh. “It didn’t hurt at first, just tingled and itched like I’d gotten something I shouldn’t have on it in the lab. Then after I went for lunch it really started to hurt and that’s when I noticed it was starting to vanish. It was bleeding a little and I, um… I got sick from the sight, not sure why.” Glancing at Hal Barry gives a sheepish smile in response to the concerned frown he was giving him. “Patty sent me home after that. I’m okay now though, doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Hal’s frown turns sad and Barry knows right away that he’s blaming himself for what happened even though they both know there’s nothing either of them could have done to prevent this. Deciding to change the subject to something hopefully less depressing Barry pulls lightly on Hal’s sleeve to get his attention. “So, are we- I mean do you want to? Date, I mean.”

“I should be asking you that. After what happened today I would have thought you wouldn’t want to be with someone as reckless as me.”

“Well,” Barry smirks leaning in to rest his forehead against Hal’s and look him in the eyes. “Someone’s gotta keep an eye on you right? May as well be the fastest man alive.”

Agreeing with a hum and happy smile, Hal leans in until their noses touch, pausing for a moment to give Barry the chance to back away. He’s pleasantly surprised when the blond presses forward instead, their lips brushing in a gentle kiss that quickly turns passionate as Barry climbs into his lap and wraps his arms around him. Strong fingers thread into brunet locks, cradling the back of his head as Barry tilts his chin up to better slot their mouths together. Their need for air becomes apparent moments later and the two pull reluctantly apart, smiling widely once they’d caught their breaths.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.”


	2. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next day is often better than the first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is how I'd originally planned the ending to be but I was so tired yesterday that I actually forgot about it??? Anyway, here's the actual end. I hope you all enjoy it as much as the first part!
> 
> Thanks to magnetocent for giving this a look over before I posted it! You're awesome!

It wasn’t until the next morning, long after he’d dressed and started on breakfast that Barry noticed it. The skin of his wrist was irritated again, itching much like it had the day before but without the almost painful tingle that had escalated to a painful ache. At first he doesn’t look at it, ignores it under the assumption that some of the bacon grease had flown from the pan and nicked his still sore wrist. As he couldn’t cook forever though, Barry eventually had to turn off the burner and reach up to get some plates. He’s purposely avoiding using his left hand for anything as the sight of the mostly gone name still pains him, his long-sleeved shirt a testament to that. 

He’s just finishing up with the eggs when he hears movement down the hall, soft footsteps padding closer and a loud yawn telling him his lover was now awake.

_ Lover. _ Barry paused what he was doing and smiled happily at that thought, hand coming up to rub absently over his exposed wrist. The idea still made him giddy, the concept so new that he couldn’t contain the smile that broke out everytime the word crossed his mind. 

“I know I’m a catch but you look way too happy for someone who woke up at five am.”

Turning around to give Hal a smile and ‘good morning’ Barry nearly chokes on his own spit when he sees his boyfriend’s current state of undress. He’d been wearing a shirt when they went to bed last night, of this Barry was sure and the shorts that Hal had borrowed from Barry  _ should  _ have fit properly but for some reason were slid down off one hip.

“That’s so unfair,” Barry mutters as he starts to dish out their breakfast and turns to the fridge for some orange juice. “Sleep well?” He asks, loud enough for Hal to hear this time and turns to get a glass when he’s suddenly being smothered from behind in one of Hal’s bear hugs.

“Would’ve been better if you’d stayed in bed with me,” Turning his head into Barry’s neck Hal places a kiss on his neck, smirking when the blonde leans into the touch. “How’s the wrist?”

He feels Barry’s shoulders droop slightly and rubs his arms in response, smoothing his hands over the speedster’s shoulders in comfort. It’s not like he expected Barry to get over the events of yesterday so quickly, not with the constant reminder on his wrist and the memory still so fresh in his mind. He had, however, hoped to distract Barry from those kinds of thoughts and knowing that he failed was disappointing. 

“The food’s going to get cold soon.”

Releasing his lover with a sigh Hal turns around and pulls out a chair, flopping gracelessly into it as he watches Barry do the same. They eat quietly, not talking much or really interacting aside from Hal’s foot rubbing against Barry’s calf under the table. It gets him a smile from the blond so Hal counts it as a win.

Barry is the first to finish, standing with his dishes and going over to the sink to rinse them off before putting them in the dishwasher. He rolls his sleeves up to the elbow so they don’t get wet and works on scrubbing the pan of grease, not hearing Hal get up until the brunet was next to him with his own dishes. He holds out a hand, offering silently to rinse the plate for Hal when he hears Hal make a surprised sound followed closely by the clatter of dishes being set on the counter. He’s about to turn and ask Hal what was wrong but the lantern beats him to the punch as he grabs Barry’s wrist, inspecting it with a frown.

“Barr, have you looked at your wrist at all since yesterday?”

“Not really,” Barry replies, somewhat worried about the way Hal was starting at his wrist. “Why, is it worse?”

Hal shakes his head with a smile and tilts Barry’s wrist so the blond could see it. He’d been expecting the same three letters that had been left over from yesterday’s ordeal, so when he looked down and saw not three, but  _ seven _ letters Barry just about jumped for joy. Instead he let his fingers trace over the newly appeared letters, tracing each one until he got to the barely faded  _ J _ . His vision blurred, a single tear falling to his wrist before he looked up at Hal with the happiest smile.

“It’s coming back,” Looking back down just to make sure it’s really true Barry lets out a loud, happy laugh when he sees that, yes, it is. “Hal, it’s coming back!” Jumping happily into his lover’s arms Barry wraps his legs around Hal’s waist and presses his face into his shoulder. “It came back… just like you did.”

Hal smiles at Barry, letting out a surprised sound when the blond suddenly crashes their lips together in a messy kiss of happiness and relief. It’s short, neither of them able to contain their joy as they stared into each other’s eyes with the feeling that this could only get better.

“Yeah, I guess it did, didn’t it?”

 

Fin

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed my first work here! Con-crit and comments welcome.


End file.
